Gabriella sat up in bed. She only just had her eleventh birthday and was excited to start at her new school, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She raced downstairs, smiling at her mother. Even though Teresa Roberts had explained that she was her adoptive mother only, she would always be Ella's mother. Teresa was a half-blood witch herself, and had instantly recognised Ella as having magic. Not just because of her self-playing music box, which the child had demanded be brought with her from Godric's Hollow, but from the photographs Ella had in a box. These photographs would move around, and they included photos of the four Potters as well as Remus and Sirius.
Ella still had those photographs even the ones of Sirius Black, her godfather and the man who told Voldemort where the family was hiding. She kept them so she would know his face, though he may not be her parents murderer he was still an evil man in her eyes. Ella quickly ate her breakfast before running back upstairs to pack her robes and bring her suitcases downstairs.
Because Teresa lived in a small town near Hogwarts castle named Hogsmeade, Ella wouldn't be catching the train. Her mother would help her to the castle. Ella wondered about her brother, Harry, who still lived in London with their aunt and uncle. She hadn't seen him since she was three since Uncle Vernon didn't like her visiting Harry 'in case she brought out the freak in him'. Teresa had eventually stopped the visits and moved them to a wizard community where Ella wouldn't be called a 'freak' or looked down on for her powers. Upon arrival outside the castle moat, Ella sat on the ground surrounded by her suitcases to await the Hogwarts train which would bring the other students.
The train finally arrived an hour later. A large man appeared at the tracks to welcome students and he led Ella and the other first years over to boats. The trip across the water was mostly quiet, the two girls Ella shared a boat with had obviously become friends over the train journey here and Ella found it difficult to follow their conversation. She shrugged it off and pulled out her battered copy of One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi.
Upon arrival at the castle the group were left to wait outside. Professor McGonagall went inside to announce the arrival of the First Years, and Ella noticed a few people pointing at her and whispering. She tried her best to ignore them, though she was relieved when McGonagall returned and began the sorting ceremony. At least, she was until they got to her name.
"Gabriella Potter."
The entire room went silent. Some students began whispering to each other, but most were just staring at her. She knew it was because everyone knew about her parents, she'd had to answer questions at Hogsmeade about them and about where her brother was (she always told people Harry lived in London but never where abouts or who with). Ella slowly walked towards the sorting hat and sat down on the stool below. She sighed in relief when the hat placed her in Gryffindor, this was the house of her parents.
Her first year passed pretty normally - she finally made some friends in her year. Katie Bell was a fellow Gryffindor, she had long brown hair tied back in a ponytail and wasn't someone you messed with. Cho Chang was a first year Ravenclaw, an Asian girl with long black hair. Cho, Katie and Ella became inseparable as the year went on.
But eventually their first year ended, and the trio parted ways outside Hogwarts with agreements to owl each other during the summer. Ella made her way back to Hogsmeade, excited for the next year when her little brother would finally arrive and they could be together at the school.
A/N: So I know in the movies Cho and Katie were both in Harry's year but in the books they were in the year above and I preferred this idea so I chose to change it a little. It shouldn't affect too much of the story really. I was thinking of making Ella a Slytherin at first, but some of the ideas I have for this story wouldn't have worked if she wasn't a Gryffindor.
I was also going to do more of her first year, but changed my mind since it would be a normal year at Hogwarts. If anyone really wants to see it, let me know and I might write a oneshot all about it.